KC will host national troubleshooting competition Saturday

Kilgore, TX (Kilgore College) — Kilgore College will host a national process technology troubleshooting competition Saturday that will bring students from as far away as Alaska.

The competition, “Process Troubleshooting Skills in Energy Consortium,” will begin at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, May 11, in the Whitten Applied Science Building on the Kilgore campus.

Eight three-person teams qualified through regionals in April for the national competition, including a team from KC.

KC’s team consists of process technology students Andrew West of Van, Steven McDowell of Gladewater and Mike Bryan of Longview.

Teams will compete using computer simulations, troubleshooting problems with various processes they could potentially encounter on the job.

The simulator will score each team’s performance and the top scoring teams will earn awards for first, second and third place

In addition to KC’s team, college teams will be represented from Alabama, Alaska, Louisiana, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Texas.

Dewey Greer, KC’s lead instructor of Process Technology, said the event is a great way for his students to demonstrate knowledge about how process equipment operates and how to solve problems associated with operating equipment.

“Troubleshooting is an everyday event in the life of a technician,” Greer said. “The process industry depends on technicians being good troubleshooters.”

The competition is sponsored by the Process Troubleshooting Skills in Energy (PTSE) organization, a coalition of education and industry partners.

Along with the competition, the PTSE is developing curriculum focused on equipment and process-specific troubleshooting scenarios.

The work is funded through the National Science Foundation’s Advanced Technological Education program.

“Chevron supports Process Technology education Initiatives, such as the PTSE Competition, that prepare students for a career in the oil and gas industry,” said Ann Burress, Learning and Development Manager at Chevron Products Company’s El Segundo Refinery in California. “By supporting initiatives like this one, Chevron helps to create a talent pool of skilled operator candidates prepared to work safely and efficiently in the energy industry.”

“Any time and effort spent developing a troubleshooting mentality in students is an investment in the safe, productive, and efficient operation of our plants later on,” said Pete Lamothe, Manager of Learning Services, Texas Operations, for Eastman Chemical Company. “The PTSE troubleshooting competition multiplies this investment and pays the dividend of a well-trained worker of the future.”

There will be an opening reception 5:30 p.m. Friday, May 10, at Staybridge Suites in Longview, and an awards ceremony will follow the completion Saturday 5:30 p.m. at Johnny Cace’s Seafood & Steak House in Longview.

• 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place schools will be awarded plaques
• 1st place winning team members will be awarded trophies
• 2nd and 3rd place team members will receive inscribed medals
• All remaining participants will receive inscribed medals